Microbusiness case studies

Popular Leeds restaurant Dapur Malaysia has transformed its business and is now offering delicious cook-at-home meals, available via collection and delivery.   

Dapur Malaysia started out as a street food vendor and now has a restaurant in Chapel Allerton, which had to close its doors when lockdown began.   

Since then, the team have worked hard to serve Leeds and Huddersfield their delicious Malysian dishes in the form of chilled, cook-at-home ready meals, which are available for delivery and collection.   

Horsforth Brewery is owned by Mark Costello and the business employs 2 part-time members of staff. After setting up the brewery whilst working another job, Mark started working full-time at the brewery in March, just as lockdown was announced.   

The team worked to quickly adapt the business, moving nearly all production from cask and keg to bottled beer, which the brewery was already producing. The Horsforth Brewery online shop launched in March, which Mark describes as a lifesaver and this enables them to continue to supply all existing, and some new, trade customers throughout the crisis, providing some of the income which has been lost as a result of the closure of pubs and the cancellation of events.   

Collaboration is key for Mark – he supported neighbouring business, Slow Rise Bakery, at the outset of the pandemic by stocking their items on the Horsforth Brewery website, whilst they worked to set up a collection service. He’s also been speaking to a brewery in New York with regards to collaborating and is working locally to build a network of businesses together.   

Committed to supporting the local community too, Horsforth Brewery has given away free beer to key workers and made donations to a local food bank and Hope Pastures Donkey Sanctuary. Mark is also working on plans for longer-term initiatives which will keep Horsforth Brewery firmly at the heart of the local community.   

When Leeds’ much-loved coffee shop closed its doors due to the coronavirus pandemic the espresso bar relaunched as a click and collect and delivery grocery store service.   

Customers can order bakery items, breakfast kits, coffee beans, flowers, soft drinks and vegan goods from the online store, for collection or delivery.   

Laynes’ famous coffees are also available for collection-only, with customers collecting their orders outside the store.   

LIVIN Italy has two popular Leeds restaurants (Granary Wharf and Cloth Hall Street).   

Following the closure of the venues when lockdown began, the team worked hard making the switch to online and have just launched a brand new website and delivery service, offering pizza, pasta, street food, fresh deli items and Italian groceries.   

Award winning Manjit’s Kitchen is one of Leeds’ much loved foodie brands, offering delicious vegetarian Punjabi street food.  

Since starting out in 2010 as a street food vendor, owners Manjit Kaur and Michael Jameson have worked hard to grow the business, which now has an outlet in Leeds Kirkgate Market and a 30 cover restaurant on Kirkstall Road.  

Following the outbreak of coronavirus, both venues have been closed to the public but Manjit and Michael pivoted to offer contactless collection and delivery within a 5 mile radius.   

The team continue to work with and support other independent traders, stocking craft beers, Kulture Coffee and local bakery items from Balterzens Bakery.  

This family-run restaurant chain has was founded in Bradford in 2002 and now has restaurants in Leeds, Manchester and Birmingham.   

Following the coronavirus outbreak, the business has switched to a kerb side delivery model whilst adding fresh marinated cook at home meals and homemade desserts to its offering. Kids meals also now come with a free kids’ colouring pack, which are used to host social media competitions to win free meals.    

The business has also been supplying the elderly, homeless and NHS/frontline staff with free food, in addition to offering increased NHS discounts.   

Here’s how Leeds-based Northern Monk has adapted to the current situation, pivoting its focus to online sales.   

60% of business lost overnight

“We lost our entire bar division (we have two tap rooms, one in Leeds and one in Manchester), and the UK beer distribution network was totally decimated, which meant that we lost 60% of our business overnight. We already had an online shop in place, but it was only a very small portion of our total sales. We knew that we needed to make this sales function a priority if we wanted to continue to get beer into people’s hands. Despite the lockdown, we wanted to do whatever we could to continue to bring unique beer experiences to as many people as possible.”   

Successfully bolstering the online offering

“We bolstered our online team from one people to four people, including moving a manager from another part of the business into the online department to help manage the volume of orders we were receiving. We also offer a monthly beer subscription, the Patrons Society, and we’ve added another option to this that enables subscribers to receive a beer subscription box on a fortnightly, instead of monthly basis. Putting a clear focus on our online shop has been more successful than we could have hoped. Facing into a new way of working is really daunting, especially in the context of what’s happening at the minute, but we received over 1,200 orders in 7 days. This is an increase of over 1000% when compared to the same week last month. We’re incredibly grateful to the people that have chosen to support us at this difficult time.”   

A positive outlook

“We’re not strangers to a bit of adversity. Northern Monk started in a cellar with £5000 given to me by my granny who sold and downsized her home. We’re resilient, and we’ve still got that same hard-working mindset that we had 6 years ago – only now it’s on a much larger scale. We’re determined to come out of this on the other side.” - Russell Bisset, Founder and Managing Director   

Supporting customers and community

Northern Monk are now hosting live online tastings every week, to enhance the online experience. The business also gave away 5000 free cans of Faith Pale Ale to NHS and front-line health workers on Sunday via its online shop (after allocating 2 hours for this, all cans were claimed in 43 minutes).    

Located on Farsley Town Street, award-winning independent business The Candied Peel Cake Co was founded by Steven Newbatt-Macdonald in 2017. In addition to creating stunning celebration cakes, it also stocks a huge range of cakes, bakes, sweet treats, local produce and cake decorating equipment.   

When the store had to close during lockdown, Steven and the team stayed busy, delighting customers with their beautifully baked creations and revamping the website to deliver an even better customer experience.   

At the start of 2020, Leeds-based makeup artist Savannah Roqaa was enjoying a full appointments diary. When the government announced lockdown in March, Savannah had to cancel all appointments and whilst isolating at home, soon discovered a talent and a love for baking.   

After initially selling via Instagram, The Savvy Baker “just blew up,” gaining 5,000 followers in a matter of weeks, and Savannah soon had to enlist the help of her Dad to keep up with demand for deliveries and contactless collections.  

Fast forward a matter of weeks and her website went live offering brownies, ‘brookies’ and cookies available for delivery across the UK, with customers in Leeds enjoying contactless deliveries and collection. Belgrave Street venue Tobacco Road is also a stockist since Leeds just can’t seem to get enough of the Savvy Baker’s indulgent bakes.   

Savannah says, “Lockdown has given us all something that we usually lack, which is time. Now we have it, there are no limits to what can be achieved and I’m so happy with how things have changed in a matter of weeks.”   

With demand for national postal deliveries growing, Savannah plans to concentrate on building her brand online.   

Wildcraft Bakery transformed its business model in a matter of days to adapt to the impact of coronavirus.   

After seeing success selling a range of baked goods including artisan bread, cakes, scones, desserts, biscuits, pastries and celebration cakes from a Leeds-based trading unit, owners Sam and Mina successfully crowdfunded over £15k and were set to open a café over Easter 2020.   

They had to postpone the launch of the café and switched to local delivery and national mail order in a matter of days.   

Sam says, “We’ve managed to retain all our staff, moving to safe, single-person shifts and we’re now contactlessly delivering and dispatching our most popular items, which are freshly baked every day. Our allergy-conscious options such as gluten/dairy free and vegan choices are particularly popular right now, as these products are proving more difficult for people to find in stores.”   

Armadillo Toys is an independent children’s toy shop, located on Harrogate Road in Chapel Allerton.    

The store has been closed over lockdown, but owner Lisa has been working hard to serve customers, taking telephone orders every weekday from 9.30am – 12.30pm and providing a collection and delivery service, which is free locally (with a suggested donation to Martin House Children’s Hospice), for orders of over £20.00.   

Lisa has also been supporting customers via FaceTime calls to help them find the best educational toys to suit the needs of their children. This is a great example of an independent store delivering a personalised experience for customers, whilst working to support the local community.   

Fabrication Crafts is an award-winning social enterprise supporting over 70 micro crafts and design businesses, with retail and workspaces in Leeds and York.   

Following the temporary closure of both stores in March due to the pandemic, founder Dawn Wood and the team worked hard to pivot the business to online, ensuring that the collective businesses can continue to trade and serve their customers.   

Founder Dawn says, “We’ve worked so hard to keep going and keep each other feeling positive. We’re flexible and open to adapting and delivering the best possible customer experience.”   

The Great Yorkshire Shop is located in the iconic Leeds Corn Exchange and sells a range of Yorkshire themed goods which have been handpicked from local independent makers, artists and designers.   

Built on a passion and pride for God’s Own County and a desire to support other independent businesses right here in Yorkshire, the store stocks cards, gifts, foods, art, homeware and beauty products, with many not often found on the high street.   

Pre and post lockdown, owner Aeneas has been continually investing in new lines of stock and whilst the store was closed, was kept busy fulfilling scores of online orders, via the website.   

Located in Chapel Allerton, The Refilling Station is a grocery shop with a difference. The shop offers zero and low waste items, eco-friendly goods, and refills on a huge range of groceries and household products, from pasta and coffee, to laundry and cleaning products.   

Since lockdown, the shop has made changes to how they operate, witching to serving customers at the door. They also offer a click and collect service so that customers can speed up their shop and introduced local delivery so that those who prefer to stay home can still enjoy their sustainable items.   

Owner Kirsty says: “I loved creating our online shop, most business take months to do what we needed to do in just a few weeks. Click and collect allows us to manage our workflow so we can be more efficient and it also offers a much-needed service to customers. Delivery allows us to expand our customer-base to those who are unable to visit the shop in person.   

Being a business owner is hard work but it's been so rewarding seeing the love for independent businesses flow. Our customers regularly thanked us for staying open and we’ve hopefully gained lots of new customers too. I wouldn’t want to do anything else!”   

A regular at Leeds Farmers Market, Yorkshire Blankets uses redundant yarn from Yorkshire mills to create soft furnishings, clothing and accessories, selling online and via selected retail outlets and other farmers’ markets across Yorkshire.   

Following the outbreak of coronavirus, the brand has focused on its online offering and updated its product range to include DIY heart wreath making kits. The business encourages customers to share their ‘isolation creations’ on social media, boosting the feel-good factor and helping to build a community. This has led to exceptional online engagement and brand awareness.   

Kits sell out on a daily basis and the brand have even been purchased internationally, by customers as far afield as Texas USA.   

This simple product innovation by Yorkshire Blankets has helped customers stay busy during lockdown whilst generating sales and online engagement, plus connections with new customers.   

An eco-friendly delivery service in Leeds is on a roll after launching on the first day of the coronavirus lockdown.    

The company use bicycles to provide a delivery service for a range of shops around Chapel Allerton, enabling customers to continue supporting local businesses even if they can’t reach their premises.   

Dabble managing director Sam Leather said: “During these uncertain times, we feel we can provide a vital service to the community and support local businesses at a time when they really need it. We have a captive audience and hopefully they will continue to use our services in the future when the world eventually returns to normal.”    

Dabble was founded by Sam and Joe Clough, who were inspired by the bustling community of the High Street in Chapel Allerton.    

Shops can list their products on Dabble’s website, and the firm will organise the delivery. Sam said: “We can take away that hassle and business owners can spend more time on developing their products. It’s great that we can help companies reach customers they wouldn’t usually be able to reach.”    

Sam and Joe eventually want to be able to roll the service out further. “We are hoping that we can support more shops and establish ourselves in other parts of North Leeds,” Sam added. “Long-term, we hope to work with farmers to help Leeds become a more self-sufficient city.”   

While the hair and beauty industry has seen repeated closures due to lockdown, salon owner Zoe Gaitley has used her time whilst her salon Hair N Beauty has been closed, to stay busy and support her clients and the local community.   

Here Zoe tells us what she’s been up to during lockdown:   

1. Creating product packages for clients, available via contactless delivery and collection. Zoe has created mini packages for clients, bespoke to their haircare needs, including conditioning masks and toning shampoo and conditioner to help maintain hair colour.   

2. Keeping in touch with clients, via social media and text. Zoe has also made the effort to telephone her older clients, many of whom live alone. This is vital for them, as their regular trips to the salon are important in maintaining their wellbeing.   

3. Supporting the local community: Zoe has won numerous awards for her community work, including a 2020 Unsung Heroes Award. Her recent work has included putting together care packs for both staff and patients at hospitals and care homes and providing new books for patients who are unable to have visitors.   

4. Raffles and prize draws, have brought excitement to clients, giving them the chance to win GHD hair straighteners, luxury shampoos and treatment vouchers for when the salon reopens.   

5. Planning for a safe reopening: Zoe is already planning how the daily running of the salon will need to change, in order to maintain a safe environment. For example, considering salon layout and opening hours. She’s already investing in items such as gloves, aprons and sanitiser and would urge other salons to do the same.   

All of this has kept salon at the heart of the community, supporting clients and spreading some kindness, whilst preparing for a safe and positive future.   

Prompted to a change in priorities following a return to work after maternity leave, and subsequent lockdown, qualified Early Years Teacher Lucy noticed a gap in the local market, and worked to develop ‘Little Seedlings,’ which now delivers baby development classes to babies aged 0-2 in Chapel Allerton. Little Seedlings also offers home learning boxes which include sensory kits and guidance to support parents and babies with playing and learning. The range is also set to be expanded to offer themed kits for children of all ages and all boxes are homemade by both Lucy and her partner Brad.   

With her new-found business, Lucy can work flexible hours and enjoy all-important quality time with Blake, whilst supporting families through the classes, home learning development kits and her wealth of early-years expertise.   

Lucy says, “I’m so pleased I took the leap and started Little Seedlings, not only am I so much happier balancing working and being a Mum, I also love meeting and supporting other families too – it’s so rewarding. I’ve been really lucky as my partner Brad has been so supportive of the business too – Little Seedlings is a proper family business.”